Championship
• It was a good time as any for Floyd Ayité to score his first Fulham goal, but his second carried a little more significance. Ayité and a spectacular Tom Cairney volley helped Slavisa Jokanovic’s side into a 3-1 lead at the break against Wolverhampton Wanderers but they trailed 4-3 in added time at Molineux. But then Ayité, the Togolese midfielder, who joined Fulham from Bastia over the summer, salvaged a 4-4 draw after heading Scott Malone’s cross home in the 93rd minute. “That’s why you play the game and that’s why I have got back into it,” Paul Lambert, the Wolves manager, said. “It’s not often you will see those types of games – it’s heart-attack material.” At the top, Newcastle United restored normal service with a convincing 4-0 win over Birmingham City.
• Jaap Stam was reluctant to talk up Reading’s promotion chances at his pre-match press conference but his team remain third after recovering from their 5-0 defeat at Fulham to beat Sheffield Wednesday 2-1, with summer signing Roy Beerens scoring both goals. “I think after the month of December – if we’re still there I think we can have another discussion about staying there,” Stam said. Norwich City must have thought their wretched run of form was over after trouncing Brentford by five goals at Carrow Road last weekend. But they fell two goals behind inside 40 minutes at Barnsley, who secured back-to-back wins thanks to goals from Tom Bradshaw and Conor Hourihane, before Nelson Oliveira pulled one back.
• Huddersfield Town recorded their first win in six matches to get their unlikely promotion push back on track. Elias Kachunga opened the scoring against Bristol City before Tammy Abraham netted his first goal in five matches, after good work from 37-year-old Aaron Wilbraham – described as the teenager’s “bouncer” by head coach Lee Johnson – allowed the Chelsea loanee to poke the ball home. Bristol City’s goalkeeper Frank Fielding could later count himself lucky, after escaping with only a booking after handling the ball outside his box. But Huddersfield made Fielding pay for his next mistake when Nahki Wells slotted home after robbing the ball away from the goalkeeper. As a result, David Wagner’s men leapfrog Leeds United – who lost at Brighton and Hove Albion on Friday – in the table.
• Ipswich Town and Cardiff City played out a score draw at Portman Road – Luke Varney and Aron Gunnarsson got the goals – but the real drama was nothing to do with the football. The Cardiff defender Sol Bamba was involved in a confrontation with his manager, Neil Warnock, after shoving the club physio and fuming at the fourth official. Bamba was initially treated after going down injured following Jonathan Douglas’s tackle before appearing to lose his head. Aron Gunnarsson gave Cardiff the lead before Ipswich replied through Luke Varney. “I didn’t really want to talk to Sol after the game so I will see him tomorrow,” Warnock said. “He just lost his rag but it was an aggressive attitude and I don’t condone Sol’s behaviour”.
• Scott Hogan scored his 12th and 13th goals of the season either side of Jamie Ward’s equaliser as Brentford beat Burton Albion 2-1 at Griffin Park, in the first ever competitive meeting between the two clubs. Despite coasting to victory in his first game back at Queens Park Rangers, Ian Holloway will have not lost sight of the task in-hand at the club. The size of the task in front him is getting bigger week-on-week, too. QPR suffered a third straight defeat after losing 1-0 at rock-bottom Rotherham United.
• Jack Grealish is back in the headlines for the right reasons after scoring the only goal of the game as Aston Villa returned to winning ways with victory over Wigan Athletic. After their torrid start to the season under Roberto di Matteo, Villa sit now just three points off the play-off pack. Wigan stay in the bottom three, two points behind Blackburn, who lost a five-goal Lancashire derby to Preston. Daniel Johnson and Danny Graham scored two apiece before Callum Robinson’s late strike earned Preston victory.
League One
• There’s only one place to start, really. In the early kick-off, where MK Dons recorded victory over AFC Wimbledon at stadium:mk in the first-ever league meeting between the two sides, thanks to Dean Bowditch’s second-half penalty. The MK Dons captain Dean Lewington was fouled by Chris Robertson, allowing Bowditch to convert from the spot, ensuring victory for Robbie Neilson’s team. A crowd of 11,185 witnessed the match-up, with almost 2,000 travelling Wimbledon supporters.
• League leaders Scunthorpe United slipped up at Rochdale, coming out on the losing side of a five-goal thriller and extending their winless run to three matches. The Iron went 3-0 behind before grabbing two late goals. Sheffield United were in a similar vein of form themselves, winless in three before breezing past Swindon Town 4-0 at Bramall Lane to close the gap on Scunthorpe to three points. Bradford City failed to close on Bolton Wanderers, who are not in action until Monday, with a goalless draw at home to Charlton. And Tom Nichols got the balling rolling before some had settled in their seats at sixth-placed Peterborough United, who thrashed Chesterfield 5-2. Nichols, the former Exeter City striker, opened the scoring after just 25 seconds and added a second later on before captain Michael Bostwick completed the rout.
• Bristol Rovers were dumped out of the FA Cup by Barrow last Sunday, so after three defeats on the spin they were happy to call on top scorer Matty Taylor, who returned to the starting lineup and duly delivered with his 16th goal of the season at home to Bury. Taylor put Rovers 2-1 in front before Ollie Clarke and Peter Hartley sealed the win to leave them two points off the top six. Also in the play-off mix are Fleetwood Town and Southend United, who recorded wins over Walsall and Coventry City respectively. Elsewhere, Millwall lost at home to Shrewsbury Town, Northampton won 3-2 at Port Vale and Oxford United drew 1-1 with Oldham.
League Two
• Plymouth Argyle fought off Doncaster Rovers at Home Park to ensure top spot remains theirs this weekend, with Jake Jervis making sure of all three points from the penalty spot on the hour mark. Third-placed Doncaster had fans’ favourite James Coppinger sent-off late on. Carlisle United – who have still only lost once in the league this season – remain second after picking up a 1-1 draw at high-flying Luton Town while Portsmouth snatched victory late on at Grimsby Town thanks to Kal Naismith’s late strike.
• There were good wins for Wycombe Wanderers and Blackpool too, with both occupying play-off positions. Scott Kashket and Adebayo Akinfenwa grabbed the goals for the Chairboys at Notts County, while Akinfenwa was sent-off in the second half. Blackpool won 2-0 at Stevenage, who lost for the second time in seven matches. Yeovil Town and Barnet had a combined unbeaten run of 15 matches between them upon their meeting at Huish Park, so Alex Nicholls’ second goal of the season ended one and prolonged another for the Bees, who lost manager Martin Allen to Eastleigh at the start of the month. Barnet sit outside the play-off places on goal difference, just in front of Shaun Derry’s Cambridge United, who scored five second-half goals at Hartlepool.
• Accrington Stanley fans were filmed fighting amongst themselves in the first half at Leyton Orient, and Jay Simpson’s second-half strike will have done little to lift their spirits. Accrington remain perilously close to the drop-zone, although second-bottom Cheltenham lost at home to Exeter City, while Newport County’s clash with Morecambe was abandoned at half-time due to a waterlogged pitch at Rodney Parade. Basement side Newport led 1-0 at the break courtesy of Tom Owen-Evans’s first goal for the club. Elsewhere, Mansfield played out a goalless draw with Colchester and Crawley won 2-0 at Crewe.
